Total Completes Gas Pipeline to Alaoji Power Station

Total Exploration and Production (E&P) Nigeria yesterday announced that gas supply to the 1,074 megawatts (MW) capacity Alaoji National Integrated Power Plant (NIPP) is expected to be boosted with its completion of a section of its Northern Option Pipeline (NOPL) from kilometre (km) 38 at Obigbo to km 50 at Imo River.

Disclosing its completion of the pipeline, Total said in a statement in Abuja that the pipeline was now ready for gas inflow to the Alaoji NIPP along the Imo River in Abia State.

“This milestone will help bring to reality, the federal government’s aspiration of improved electric power supply in Nigeria and demonstrates Total’s commitment to meeting its promise to deliver better energy,” Managing Director of Total E&P Nigeria Ltd, Elisabeth Proust, said in the statement.

The NOPL according to Total, is a 24 inch wide, 50km long pipeline under construction by it on behalf of its joint venture with the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC/TEPNG Joint Venture).

It explained that when other sections of the pipeline are completed later this year, gas supply to Alaoji would grow by 100 million cubic feet of gas per day (mcf/d).

In an effort to ensure early gas supply to newly built power plants, the federal government requested TEPNG to complete a section of the NOPL from kilometre 38 at Obigbo to km 50 at Imo-River where the line connects to the Nigeria Gas Company (NGC) facilities.

It noted that the completed portion allows gas inflow to the Alaoji power plant and that the intervention for early gas required that it mobilised additional resources to fast track the works in order to meet the deadline despite numerous changes associated with the difficult terrain.

While gas now being supplied to the Alaoji power plant at this interim period will come from Seven Energy, the NGC is however expected to transport gas through their pipeline and the section of the NOPL that has been completed by Total.